You guys did not notice that Tsukune-chan was in the wedding right? lol

@Waywardpaladin

Which Lion for you? I liked how Ujiaki, Kage, and Toturi were portrayed. Well done.

1 hour ago, Yogo Rye X said:

You guys did not notice that Tsukune-chan was in the wedding right? lol

Yeah, like a lost puppy. I mean, I get she's young and inexperienced and all...just seems they made a particular point of contrasting her with the casual elegance and grace of Kaede. Which I suppose is only fair to Kaede given that it's HER wedding. I think it just feels weird getting that outsider viewpoint of your champ that makes her look so helpless. I hope we can get some fiction for her to really shine in, remind us there's a reason she was chosen by Ofushikai.

The storyline with the Akodo defecting over to the Daidoji is very interesting. I agree with Toturi that the empire needs peace, but each bit of new lore makes me want to kill every crane in sight! It would be super dishonorable for the Crane to take in this Utsugiri guy instead of killing him outright as a traitor. Would love to see this part of the story fleshed out a bit more

11 minutes ago, Eisenmerc said:

The storyline with the Akodo defecting over to the Daidoji is very interesting. I agree with Toturi that the empire needs peace, but each bit of new lore makes me want to kill every crane in sight! It would be super dishonorable for the Crane to take in this Utsugiri guy instead of killing him outright as a traitor. Would love to see this part of the story fleshed out a bit more

First thing that popped into my head was Daidoji Osen/Kitsu Osen (if you're familiar with Old5R)

I know a little Old5R but sadly not that storyline. It would seem something like that would be a pretty big deal right?

25 minutes ago, Zesu Shadaban said:

Yeah, like a lost puppy. I mean, I get she's young and inexperienced and all...just seems they made a particular point of contrasting her with the casual elegance and grace of Kaede. Which I suppose is only fair to Kaede given that it's HER wedding. I think it just feels weird getting that outsider viewpoint of your champ that makes her look so helpless. I hope we can get some fiction for her to really shine in, remind us there's a reason she was chosen by Ofushikai.

Weddings are not Tsukune`'s natural environment... she was not politically savvy in her youth, but rather a strong willed character.

I hope Kaede keeps her Phoenix status and still becomes Master of Void, not unknown for a Master in the Phoenix to be married outside the clan..... but I suppose Kaede now is not the Kaede I think of as Master of the Void/Oracle of the Void, not important enough to keep her position when marrying a Lion champion. I suppose it also depends on what happens to Toturi long run.

Whoo! Kage!

Also, the image of young Kaede and Toturi is super cute.

Although it will be a Crab who takes the Emerald Championship. We have the best duelist in the Empire after all.

57 minutes ago, shineyorkboy said:

Although it will be a Crab who takes the Emerald Championship. We have the best duelist in the Empire after all.

Kisada always angry...Kisada smash! ^^

1 hour ago, Zesu Shadaban said:

Yeah, like a lost puppy. I mean, I get she's young and inexperienced and all...just seems they made a particular point of contrasting her with the casual elegance and grace of Kaede. Which I suppose is only fair to Kaede given that it's HER wedding. I think it just feels weird getting that outsider viewpoint of your champ that makes her look so helpless. I hope we can get some fiction for her to really shine in, remind us there's a reason she was chosen by Ofushikai.

Yeah I look forward to that as well. She is one of those characters whose backstory and development will be good to follow as it is like watching one of those hero shows where the protagonist starts weak and unexpectedly becomes part of a destiny that makes/needs him to be stronger to face evil.

2 hours ago, Eisenmerc said:

I know a little Old5R but sadly not that storyline. It would seem something like that would be a pretty big deal right?

I thought it was a character who was Crane originally, and married to the Lion - and then returned to his Crane family to server their half of the war. Sounds like something that probably happens a lot as you're torn between your real family, and your married family.

12 minutes ago, Soshi Nimue said:

I thought it was a character who was Crane originally, and married to the Lion - and then returned to his Crane family to server their half of the war. Sounds like something that probably happens a lot as you're torn between your real family, and your married family.

I think Sword and Fan talks about that a bit. Since marriages between Clans are usually used to seal treaties if the treaty breaks down and the Clans go to war the marriage tends to get cancelled. Although it's very rare for that to occur once the couple has born children.

Not usually a fan of the Lion, but this fiction and the post-tournament fiction were both really good.

So from the comments in this thread, I take it Toturi didn't marry Kaede in the old canon? Did something happen to her?

They did, and they had three children, but it wasn't until several years after where we are in the timeline.

I'm really liking Toturi here.... not your usual Lion, and he gets flak for it. BUT! I like his idea of serving the Empire, and how best to wage war... and not to do it unnecessarily.

5 hours ago, Eisenmerc said:

The storyline with the Akodo defecting over to the Daidoji is very interesting. I agree with Toturi that the empire needs peace, but each bit of new lore makes me want to kill every crane in sight! It would be super dishonorable for the Crane to take in this Utsugiri guy instead of killing him outright as a traitor. Would love to see this part of the story fleshed out a bit more

You have a point. I felt somewhat the same about the many Agasha who defected to the Phoenix in the original L5R story. Yes, Hitomi waa going coo-coo, and was allowing Kokujin to 'purge' many Dragon clan members. Still, some chose to stay and try to fix things from within the clan, and if nothing else, the Agasha shouldn't have had 3-4 personal honor characters immediately after committing such a (in Rokugan) shameful act.

2 hours ago, Mandalore525 said:

Not usually a fan of the Lion, but this fiction and the post-tournament fiction were both really good.

So from the comments in this thread, I take it Toturi didn't marry Kaede in the old canon? Did something happen to her?

He married her after he was already Emperor, and believed it was the only way to prevent the lying darkness from taking over, as Kaede, by that time, was Oracle of the Void and thus immune. However, she they were engaged as infants in original story as well.

From a Phoenix point of view I just hope we dont totally lose her as a Phoenix character as she was an important part of our history.

It is interesting for me to see what will happen next, if Toturi becomes ronin and/or Emperor and if the Hantei line continues to exist. Those are major canon changes if they do/don't happen.

The friction in the lion was a great story last time. Ujiaki played a brilliant role in the divide, and hopefully in this version will be focused on fostering war.

7 hours ago, Eisenmerc said:

The storyline with the Akodo defecting over to the Daidoji is very interesting. I agree with Toturi that the empire needs peace, but each bit of new lore makes me want to kill every crane in sight! It would be super dishonorable for the Crane to take in this Utsugiri guy instead of killing him outright as a traitor. Would love to see this part of the story fleshed out a bit more

Except he was not an Akodo. He was a Daidoji, married to an Akodo, so when the war seems so inminent, he chose his clan, the Crane, over the Lion. Is not so much a defection as a return to his home and his true allegiance, the Crane.

As a veteran of Winter Court 4 and the Phoenix/Lion cordiality that was one of its few constants...

I'm gratified to see a bit of the old goodwill, even if only tangentially, in the new timeline.

20 hours ago, Tetsuhiko said:

I don't know if it was an inspiration, but I remember Ikoma Ujiaki from the Thousand Years of Darkness. He accepted Fu Leng's claim as the rightful Emperor, got corrupted, and his quote, if I remember correctly was: ''One cannot stand in the shadows forever.''

Maybe this is an Ikoma plot to take over the leadership of the Lion, or something far more sinister...

The Ikoma are traditionalists and wanted to stay loyal to the Hantei (even a possessed one). There were two Lion armies at the Day of Thunder, Tsanuri's loyalists and the others led by Motso. Toturi was able to unite them against Fu-Leng with a cry of, "For Tsuko"! Don't know if it will play out that way, this time, but there is that whole prophecy thing, "When the last Akodo falls, so falls the last Hantei".

20 hours ago, franzvong said:

What do you mean? We are in the first cycle, what should reflect?

I would like the Character cards to have more Personality.

Joking aside, I'd like more flavor text (or at least less generic flavor text) and FFG to get rid of the ridiculous policy of the Core Set being evergreen.

9 hours ago, Mandalore525 said:

Not usually a fan of the Lion, but this fiction and the post-tournament fiction were both really good.

So from the comments in this thread, I take it Toturi didn't marry Kaede in the old canon? Did something happen to her?

As others have said - not until later - but to give a more full picture Akodo Toturi was betrothed to Kaede, and was supposed to have married her at about this time. He choose to flee into the mountains to be with his Geisha love Hatsuko instead. The Scorpion clan influenced Hatsuko and tried to get her to kill Toturi in a love suicide since he was a great clan daimyo and she was just a geisha. That fell through, but Toturi had already thrown off his engagement. They got back together later after he took the throne and in response to another challenge as others have said.

8 hours ago, Tabris2k said:

Except he was not an Akodo. He was a Daidoji, married to an Akodo, so when the war seems so inminent, he chose his clan, the Crane, over the Lion. Is not so much a defection as a return to his home and his true allegiance, the Crane.

I don't think we know for sure if he started out as a Daidoji. Even so it's pretty slimy to turn your back on your wife and daughter like that, even assuming there was an 'escape clause' in the marriage contract that allows him to abandon his lord in the process.

3 minutes ago, Eisenmerc said:

I don't think we know for sure if he started out as a Daidoji. Even so it's pretty slimy to turn your back on your wife and daughter like that, even assuming there was an 'escape clause' in the marriage contract that allows him to abandon his lord in the process.

In the fiction he says "I hear your husband Daidoji Utsugiri has abandoned you to join the Crane army. I hope his actions have not rallied your sympathies against us in our dispute with the Crane.”

This implies he was Daidoji first. Its ambiguous if he changed his name during the marriage or not, so he may have never gave up his clan even though he had children. Seems she didn't give up her clan either. Its common to have conflicted allegiances between clan, family, and marriage. Ujiaki also uses this opportunity to check her allegiance to ensure she isn't swayed by her husband over her clan.

16 hours ago, Zesu Shadaban said:

I think it just feels weird getting that outsider viewpoint of your champ that makes her look so helpless.

"I'll do my best."